I’m a sophomore in high school and Columbia is my dream college. Freshman year I had a 3.9 unweighted and a 4.58 weighted gpa (all honors) and this year I have the potential to get up to a 4.9 (all honors and 1 AP). I have been a competitive all star cheerleader since 2011, volunteer for the fresh air fund, creative writing club, and girls & union chorus (girls is auditioned and partly after school). This year I’m planning on doing science honors society, youth and government club, and key club (a club that volunteers/gets involved in community activities) along with all of the extra ciriculars I did last year. This summer I’m going on a EF tour with my school through Europe. I was accepted to Columbia’s cyber constitutional law class this summer but I ended up not being able to do it because it interfeared with cheer. What are some things I could be doing to help my chances of getting accepted?
Hi.
I don’t want to be mean so I won’t tell you that you have no shot at Columbia unless you learn to spell extra curricular 
Your 3.9 UW GPA freshman year means nothing without context - were there dozens of kids with a higher GPA? Was this the highest freshman GPA in your school ever?
You have to be careful about the EF tour through Europe - that can reek of over-privilege, and might not be in your best interest.
I have been a fan of the Fresh Air Fund for many years. I hope your chapter actually does meaningful activity instead of babysitting/entertaining each other / resume padding.
The best thing to help your chances would be to keep your grades at the top, and continue to be an excellent student. Take the toughest schedule your school permits. Do your best on the SAT/ACT, and of course the PSAT next year.
Don’t stress about college - show that you’re enjoying high school. All of the elite colleges are more interested in the genuine good kids, who are not just great students, but they can show they know how to have fun. Don’t do activities because you think it will look good, do them because they interest you, and you enjoy them.
Sorry if this comes off harsher than I intended - I think you are on your way to a great place - if not Columbia, you will still end up successful - if you learn to spell extra curricular.
It is way too early to think about specific colleges (especially the hyper-competitive ones). You just have one full year’s GPA and you have no standardized testing. You also need to recognize that HS should be an experience in and of itself – a time of learning and growth and not just a 4 year college application prep experience.
It is good to take school seriously and know that college will be on your horizon, but it is too early to start planning for specific colleges. I would highly recommend that you get off of CC until your junior year.
For now you should focus on:
–Working hard, learning, and doing as well as you can in the most challenging curriculum you can manage.
–When the time comes study for standardized tests.
–Continue your involvement in activities you care about and work towards making meaningful contributions to those activities.
–Enjoying spending time with your family and friends.
When the time comes asses your academic stats (including GPA, standardized tests, course rigor) as well as your financial needs and apply to a wide range of reach, match, and safety schools that appear affordable (you will have to run a net price calculator for each school you consider) and that you would be happy to attend. You need to expand your horizons and recognize that there are many wonderful schools out there where you can have a great 4 year experience and get where you want to go in life.
Your priorities are set poorly.
And it is interfere.